The drifting tanker, with 102,000 tonnes of heavy oil in its tanks, is not a direct threat to Mauritius. In fact, the Ocean Pride 1 is in Reunionese waters. As of this morning, it was about 96 nautical miles northwest of Mauritius. The ship is flying the Sierra Leonean flag. Although it does not pose a threat to Mauritius, the authorities are on high alert. The tanker has had an engine failure since 2 September. This was while it was sailing towards Mauritius. According to Inspector Shiva Coothen of the Police Press Office there is no chance that the tanker will come close to our coast.
When the boat was approaching Mauritian territorial waters, it was intercepted by the National Coast Guard’s radars, which detected anomalies. Contacted by the Mauritian authorities, the person in charge of the boat said that it had an engine failure.
He was therefore asked to go 12 nautical miles from Mauritius to carry out repairs, especially as the vessel was carrying 120,000 tonnes of heavy oil.
